by Tanya Stowe
He raised his arm to protect his face, hitting at the stained-glass sections of the lamp. Pieces broke free and colored fragments flew toward his face, slicing into his cheek. But he only paused for a moment...just long enough for Sassa to run to the door, unbolt it and throw it open. She almost tripped over the body of Agent Paulsen. Halting just in time, she hopped over him and lunged down the stairs. Another body lay on the ground to her left. She heard scuffling from around the corner but she never stopped or looked back.
Way down the street, blue lights flashed. Sirens echoed over the night air. Sassa ran out into the street toward the oncoming cars. Headlights flashed over her and she halted, clutching her now screaming baby to her breast.
A tall, familiar form, shadowed behind the lights, stepped out of a vehicle and ran to her. Other agents poured from the cars and ran toward the house.
Sassa sobbed with relief and fell into Jared’s arms.
“Are you all right?”
She tried to answer but she was crying too hard. She buried her face against his chest. The familiar scent of pine drifted over her. She was safe. Truly safe. Relief swept over her, but shock was taking hold. She couldn’t stop crying.
Finding no comfort from her mother, Keri reached for Jared. He hefted her into one arm but kept the other wrapped securely around Sassa.
Even her daughter felt safe with him. That thought made her cry even more.
“I’m sorry. So, so sorry. I promise I won’t leave your side again until this is over.”
They were the sweetest words she’d ever heard. If only she could stop sobbing long enough to tell him so. But she couldn’t. All she could do was cling to him as days and days of fear finally broke through her wall of armor. She clung to Jared and tried to calm down. But one thought ran through her mind.
When it is over, how will I survive without him?
* * *
Jared surveyed the scene around Sassa’s house. Neighbors of the quiet little cul-de-sac gathered on the sidewalk behind the yellow caution tape. Sassa and Keri sat in the back of his SUV. It had taken Jared a long time to calm them both down.
Something had broken inside Sassa. He could sense it. Some sort of dam had been holding back hidden emotions, deep, old feelings. Now that the dam had been breached, she was struggling to get her head above the water. Jared was determined to see that she didn’t have to struggle too much more.
He strode over to Kopack, who stood in the middle of Sassa’s yard.
“How bad is it?”
“Not good. Chekhov used the same tactic. Some of his younger acolytes distracted the agents in the front. Then he attacked from the back. We found two sets of footprints back there. My agents took down the two young terrorists in front. One of them is barely hanging on. But Chekhov had someone else with him. Another larger man, about a size-eleven shoe, larger than Chekhov’s.”
Jared shook his head. “We even know Chekhov’s shoe size but still we can’t catch him.”
Kopack made a rude sound. “One of my agents has a concussion. The other has a serious stab wound to the stomach.”
“Well, we know which one came in contact with Chekhov. He’s lethal with those knives. What do we know about the other man with Chekhov?”
“Now that Heiser is dead, we suspect it was his third in command. A man named Rashad Korgay. He’s a Chechnyan dissident with ties to the Russian mafia and black-market weapons dealers.” Kopack paused. “Chekhov used a police-grade battering ram to knock down Sassa’s door. Korgay has to be the one supplying them with top-of-the-line weapons. The other two Black Knights, the ones my agents took down, are young and still unidentified.”
“Chekhov’s like a pied piper. How many of these young men and women will he allow to die before we stop him?”
“I don’t know but he’s hemorrhaging people.” The agent looked around. “So am I.”
Jared felt Kopack’s frustration all the way to the bottom of his toes. “I’ve asked for help, border agents from our drug section. Those guys have been around the block. They’ll give us more manpower and some great insight. They should be here by tomorrow morning.”
“Good. We can use the help. By the way, the agent Chekhov stabbed was awake when we arrived. He saw Chekhov leave and he was bleeding badly on his arm. Seems your girl did some damage.”
“Sassa will be glad to hear that. She said she threw a Tiffany lamp at him and it shattered.”
“Too bad she missed his head.”
“She tried.” They exchanged grim smiles as EMTs rushed a gurney past them, headed to an ambulance.
Jared inhaled. “Was that Agent Paulsen?”
Kopack nodded. “He was by the front door when two Black Knights attacked. His partner was around the corner doing a search. Paulsen took the brunt of the attack.”
“How is he?”
“Not good. He took a shot to the chest. Then both terrorists turned on the other agent. That’s when Larsen walked up and intervened. His efforts cost him.” Kopack gestured to another body the EMTs were zipping into a body bag. “He lost his life but saved my agent. If Larsen hadn’t shouted at them, my agent would probably be dead, too.”
“Sassa said she heard her ex’s voice. Are you sure it’s Larsen?”
“The ID in his wallet identified him.”
Jared shook his head. “So he saved one of your agents and died a hero.”
“You and I both know that wasn’t his reason for showing up here.”
Jared grimaced. “No, he heard all about Sassa’s sudden popularity.”
“He won’t need hers. He’ll have his own.”
Both men were silent as the irony of his last act filtered through their thoughts. Jared wondered how the news would affect Sassa.
“The last terrorist we captured...” Kopack said after a few moments. “He’s just a kid. I’m hoping we can crack him and he’ll give us more info on the group.”
“I wouldn’t count on it. All the members attempted to end their lives rather than talk.”
Kopack shrugged. “At least maybe we can get numbers out of him. I’d like to know how many Black Knights are left.” He shook his head. “We know one thing. The Spyder didn’t send her information on to Chekhov.”
“How can you be so sure? The IT guys are still checking her computer.”
Kopack eyed him. “Do you think Chekhov would have wasted men in such a flagrant attempt to snatch Sassa if he had any idea the formula was available to him by some other means?” Kopack shook his head. “He’s still searching and he’s getting more desperate...like time is running out for him.”
“What do you mean? We’ve known from the beginning this has been a do-or-die situation for everyone in his organization.”
“Maybe they’re so desperate because they know their leader doesn’t have much time left.”
“You think Chekhov’s disease is catching up with him?”
“My agent who saw his escape said he was bleeding badly and was pale—so pale, he looked half dead. He looked much worse than our most recent photos show.”
“Even if that’s true,” Jared noted, “Chekhov’s death won’t stop the group. They’ll keep going until all of them are captured or dead themselves.”
The truth of that sat on the cold night air. They both stared at Sassa’s little cottage, lights blazing into the dark. Figures moved in and out, gathering evidence and clearing bodies.
Bodies. Jared shook his head. It didn’t seem real—like it was a scene from a movie, not his life. All he wanted to do was to snatch Sassa and Keri into his arms and drive away.
He shook his head. “We have to get her away. Some place safe where she can work on the cure.”
Kopack paused. “I still can’t believe she cracked the code.”
“I told you she was brilliant.”
“Yes, you did.” Kop
ack studied him with a speculative look that made Jared uncomfortable. “I agree about taking her away. We need to find a safe place. The campus is too busy. Too many bystanders could get hurt. Her house is compromised and, besides, there’s not enough room for equipment.”
“What kind of equipment?”
“Cameras. Motion detectors. Wires. We need it all. What about her parents’ place? You said they had a farm outside of town.”
“Near Kingsburg. It’s big and somewhat isolated. But hold on... I meant take her someplace secure and far away, like our Washington offices. Taking her to her parents’ feels like you’re painting a target on her back.”
“She already has a target on her back. We’re just going to make sure she has lots of barriers between her and the shooters.”
Jared shook his head. “I don’t like this. You’re using Sassa as bait.”
Kopack sent him that speculative look again, the one that made him nervous. “You’re not thinking, De Luca. We’ve been here two weeks. We’ve run through almost every hotel, dive, dump and parking garage in this town. We’ve had our video guys watching film of every major road and freeway. We’ve identified cars and narrowed down locations where the Black Knights could be hiding. We’re closing the net. If we put Sassa in hiding, they’ll go underground, bide their time while they try to locate her. We’ll have to start over when they resurface. Not to mention the fact that will give them time to recuperate and maybe even reinforce. How safe do you think she’ll be if that happens?”
Jared inhaled slowly. He hated to admit it but Kopack was right. All Sassa needed was a few more weeks, maybe even days, to find the cure. Then the Black Knights would have no more use for her and she would be safe. The best thing they could do was buy her the time she needed.
Kopack must have taken Jared’s silence for agreement. He nodded once then said, “As soon as my people have cleared her place of evidence, take her inside and have her pack all the clothes and supplies she needs. She won’t be leaving her parents’ place until she has the cure...or we have the Black Knights. Whatever comes first.” He turned and walked away. After a few steps, he halted, spun and strode back to Jared.
Kopack leaned in close. “You know, De Luca, I’ve told you before, but it bears repeating. For an officer with no field experience, you’ve handled yourself exceptionally well. But I’m going to give you one word of caution. Don’t become too emotionally involved with your subject. It could cloud your judgment. Those kinds of mistakes will get you both killed.”
The agent walked away, leaving Jared shaking his head.
Too late. He’d been emotionally involved with Sassa from the first time he’d met her. Right from the start, she’d intrigued him. Bedraggled, beaten and partially in shock, she’d refused to let Kopack break her. She’d fought back. No. Not fought. Confronted.
It was hard not to be emotionally impacted by a woman who challenged every idea he had, even his feelings for his ex-wife. Sassa had shattered his illusions about Jessica and if he stuck around much longer, she might destroy the rest of his dreams and aspirations. Gritting his teeth, he stuffed down his resentment and headed for his vehicle to tell Sassa her ex-husband was dead.
SEVEN
Jared walked toward the SUV, its blue lights flashing over his face and grim features. Sassa had watched the gurneys go by with bodies encased in bags. Even before he slid inside, she knew what he was going to say.
He opened the back door and slid in.
“One of those bodies was Erik’s, wasn’t it? He’s dead.”
Jared shut the door before he spoke. “Yes. Apparently, he saw the altercations and left his car to confront the intruders. The Black Knights turned on him and that enabled the agent to break free.”
She stared at him. “His interference saved the agent?”
Jared nodded.
Sassa closed her eyes. A thousand thoughts ran through her mind. The way she’d start a conversation and Erik would take over, determined to be the center of attention in all their interactions, even ones concerning her work, which he knew nothing about. The times he’d come home late at night, after she’d gone to bed, and binge eat because he’d been gambling all day and night. He’d clean out their bank account, then their food, leaving her to scramble for something to eat the next day.
At family gatherings he’d always had some story or joke to share. He’d made everyone laugh and was the life of the party. In their early years, her friends had thought he was wonderful and her concerns had fallen on deaf ears. She was simply the bitter, unhappy girl who lost her scholarship. No one had understood how Erik’s need to be great affected everyone who cared about him. And now...
Please, Lord, cleanse my heart of this bitterness. Let me see only good. Let me speak only what You would have me say.
A feeling of peace nipped at the edges of her senses. That sense of peace was strong enough to allow her to say, “I’m glad some good came from his death.”
Sassa swallowed as sadness overwhelmed her. “In the end, he got what he always wanted. I’m happy for that, too.” Her voice was raspy. Hot tears filled her eyes and slid down her cheeks. “He was a hero for someone.”
Keri had finally fallen into a fitful sleep in her arms. Sassa dashed away the tears with one hand. But more followed. Jared wrapped an arm around her and pulled her close. She leaned into his broad shoulder to cry and mourn, not for the man Erik had become, but the one she knew he could have been if only he’d learned to draw on the Lord’s strength. How different his life—their life together—would have been.
And yet...here she was again. Falling for another man who didn’t know the Lord, who didn’t know how to draw on the strength she had just called upon.
She couldn’t do it again. She wouldn’t.
Wiping her tears, she pushed away from Jared’s shoulder. Her tears had soaked his shirt. She touched the wet spot.
“I’m sorry.” It felt like she was apologizing for more than just wetting his shirt. Those words went deeper for her.
“Don’t be. I’m happy to lend my shoulder to a woman who can forgive like you just did.”
His voice, filled with tenderness, shook her to her core. Oh, how she wanted to lean in, to press her face into the curve of his neck, to smell his clean, pine scent and to feel safe. But there was no safety there. The only true safety was in the arms of the Lord.
She wiped her cheeks again. “I haven’t forgiven him. He threatened to use Keri against me. It will be a long time before I forgive that. But the Lord gave me the weapon to fight the bitterness by showing me the good that came from Erik’s sacrifice.”
Jared made a rude noise. “I doubt Erik walked up to those men planning to make the ultimate sacrifice.”
Sassa nodded. “No, I’m sure he didn’t. But the Lord always finds the good and shows it to His people. A man is alive because of Erik’s actions. The Lord finds the good. I’ll draw comfort from that.”
Jared’s arm fell away and he leaned back. “We’re back to that again. I’m sorry, Sassa, but I can’t see any good in the life I led with my mother.”
There it was. The admission she’d been dreading to hear. The hurt she couldn’t heal. Once he spoke it out loud, there’d be no turning back, no more pretending. She almost reached out to stop him from speaking. But the look on his face, the hard edges in his features, said it more clearly than words.
“I looked for the good, Sassa. Believe me. I prayed for answers and help every day, and still, every minute with my mother was a struggle to find food. To clean her up after she passed out. To go to school afraid of how I smelled because they had shut the water off and I couldn’t shower. Where was God in all that?”
Fresh tears fell, this time for the little boy whose struggle was so horrific. “I don’t know why you had to go through that, Jared. But I do know God showed you the way to climb out. Even when you didn’t rec
ognize Him, He was working in your life. He gave you your grandfather and that policeman. Didn’t you ever wonder why that simple interaction made such an impact on you? I’m certain the Lord made sure you would see the man He meant you to be.”
He looked away, the flashing lights reflected across his face. His jaw tightened.
Just a minute movement, but it made Sassa’s heart sink. It showed her the truth she’d been avoiding, hoping it wasn’t true. But now she had to face it.
Jared couldn’t—no, refused—to see how God was working in his life. Sassa hadn’t been able to share God’s love with Erik. No matter how hard she prayed or talked, her ex-husband had turned away. Why did she dare to think she could succeed with Jared? More important, why was it her fate to fall for men who didn’t know God?
Maybe the fault wasn’t in the men she loved but in her own faith.
She didn’t know the answers. She only knew she couldn’t go through it again. As wonderful as Jared was, she couldn’t place her hopes and dreams of wholeness with a man who didn’t know the Lord. Not again. She just couldn’t.
Straightening away from Jared, she created a space between them and sniffled. “Can you find me some tissues and a phone? I need to call Erik’s sister.”
Jared heaved a sigh. “Why don’t you leave that to Kopack?”
She shook her head. “Sandra has been my friend, stood by me all these years. I have to give her some warning.”
In the shadowy light, his jaw tightened even more. “You just can’t let anything slide, can you? You have to confront everything.” He slid across the seat and climbed out of the vehicle. “I’ll see what I can do.” Frustration filled his tone.
It seemed like only minutes before he returned carrying a box of tissues and a blanket from the back of her sofa. Leaning in, he set the tissues beside her and spread the blanket over her and Keri. Then he pulled her phone out of his pocket.
